With her hair now back to its longer length Regina couldn't wipe the smile off of her face. When they had gotten home she had put on her Rapunzal dress and danced around the house, happy that she could finally be the princess she wanted to be. David and Mary-Margaret couldn't help but smile as they watched her and they both decided perhaps next time Regina asked to get her hair cut short they would convince her not to.
"Seven am in the usual morning line up. Start on the chores and sweep till the floors all clean." Regina sang and danced around. "Polish and wax. Do laundry and mop and shine up. Sweep again and by then it's like seven fifteen. And so I'll read a book or maybe two or three. I'll add a few new paintings to my gallery. I'll play guitar and knit and cook and basically just wonder when will my life begin." Regina spun around on the spot.
David couldn't help the smile on his face. He turned to Mary-Margaret. "You know for a three year old she hasn't got a bad voice."
"I know. Regina was always a wonderful singer." Mary-Margaret replied. "Years ago when I was younger and she was…well you know…She used to sing to me. Lullabies that kind of thing. She had a wonderful voice. So soft. She used to sing when she was out tending to her apple tree as well. After a while though she just stopped." Mary-Margaret finished with a sad look on her face as she remembered how unhappy Regina became.
"Well this time around she won't." David said wrapping his arm around Mary-Margaret's shoulder.
She leaned into him for a moment and then looked up at the clock. "I better start on dinner. I invited Emma and Henry round."
"Oh. What time will they be here?" David asked.
"In about an hour or so." Mary-Margaret called back as she walked through to the kitchen.
David nodded and looked back over at Regina who was still singing and dancing. He smile and decided an hour or so was enough time to have some fun with his daughter and play whatever game she was currently playing. He walked further into the play room and he lifted Regina up from behind making her squeal and he spun her around loving the sound of her giggling ( something he never thought he would love was the sound of Regina giggling.) He placed her back down and sat down on the sofa that was in there and he pulled her up onto his knee. She cuddled into him and he held onto her tightly.
"Hi daddy." Regina said sweetly.
"Hi princess." David smiled. "What game are you playing today?"
"Princesses daddy. I Rapunzal and I locked in a tower waiting for my prince to rescue me." Regina explained.
"Can I play to?" David asked.
Regina nodded excitedly and jumped out of his arms. She straightened her dress out and then ran over to her toy box and pulled out a crown and a sword and ran back over to David with them. "You can be the prince daddy. You need to save me from the tower and then we's live happily eva after." David smiled and he placed the crown on his head and took the toy sword from her. He then stood up and Regina ran out of the room and David followed her and watched and she climbed up the stairs to the top and stood by the railings at the landing. "This the tower daddy. I trapped by mean lady and I needs my prince to saves me."
"Never fear my princess I shall save you." David said holding his sword up in the air.
Regina giggled happily. "Help me! Look out dragon!" She shouted and pointed.
David jumped round so he was facing the other way and pretended to be fighting with a dragon. Although it had been a long time since he had used a sword he had not lost the art of it (even if he was using a toy sword to fight a pretend dragon) he remembered all the moves to make and he was happy to do it for his daughter and her game. "Down beast. You shall not stop me from saving the princess." David shouted. He then jabbed the sword out into the air. "I have vanquished you beast."
"Yey!" Regina shouted happily jumping up and down and clapping her hands. "Now you need to try climb the tower daddy."
David turned round and looked up the stairs as if deciding the best way. He knew he was going to need to pretend there was obstacles in the way. He couldn't get to her that easy. He began to climb, stumbling a little and holding onto the banister. "I will save you my princess."
Mary-Margaret hearing all the commotion from the kitchen had went out to see what was going on and couldn't help but smile as she saw David pulling himself up the stairs and Regina sat on the landing in her princess dress waiting on him. She laughed to herself as he wore a crown on his head and a sword was sticking out from the belt loop in his jeans.
David reached the top of the stairs and he walked over to Regina and lifted her up. She wrapped her arms around his neck. "My hero. My prince has come to saves me." Regina gushed and she hugged David tightly.
When Regina called him her hero he felt his heart flutter. He had always dreamed of hearing his daughter call him her hero and of course he had always thought of Emma doing so but the fact Regina had just said it to him did not make the moment any less special. He wasn't stupid. He knew he would probably never hear Emma say such a thing to him and he knew Regina was his and Mary-Margaret's second chance at raising a child so any moment like this one he would hold onto for a very long time.
"Of course I saved you my princess. Now let's get down from this tower." David played along and he carried Regina down the stairs and it was then that he noticed Mary-Margaret stood there with a big smile on her face. "Hi." He said with a goofy smile on his face.
"Hello there prince." Mary-Margaret replied. "Congratulations on saving the princess."
"Thanks you my queen." Regina replied for David and she wriggled in his arms to get down. He placed her down and she curtseyed. She then nudged David's leg. "Daddy you curtsey to the queen."
David nodded trying not to laugh and he bowed. "Thank you my queen. It was an honour to save the princess."
"I thinks we should have ice cream because daddy saves me from the tower." Regina suggested.
Mary-Margaret laughed. "Nice try Regina. Maybe after dinner."
"Not now?" Regina asked with a small frown on her face.
"No not now. After dinner. We don't eat sweets before dinner." Mary-Margaret explained.
"Okay." Regina sighed. "Daddy come on lets go play another game." Regina said pulling on David's arm and dragging him back through to the play room.
It was a little later on and now Emma and Henry had arrived. They had all sat around the table and had the delicious dinner that Mary-Margaret had made. Once it was finished they had some ice cream and then Mary-Margaret, David and Emma went into the living room and Regina dragged Henry through to her play room. She explained her princess game to him and demanded as nicely as she could that he were to be the prince and save her, just like she played with David. Henry of course was not very sure about this game but as Regina had given him the puppy dog eyes look he couldn't say no to her and found himself with a crown on his head and a toy sword in his hands.
They were now in the hallway, Henry had saved Regina from the tower and was now fighting off a terrible dragon. Henry went to jab the dragon and Regina rolled her eyes in her toddler way and sighed, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Henrrryyyy. That's not how you kill a dragon. Do that!" Regina bossed as she showed him what to do.
"That's what I done." Henry answered.
Mary-Margaret, David and Emma all laughed as they watched Regina shake her head with a frown on her face. "No no. You didn't do it right. This way!" Regina said showing him again.
Henry stood up straight and rolled his eyes as he looked over to the three laughing adults. "I cannot believe she is still bossing me around and she is three years old now!" He mumbled. "Isn't she have suppose to have stopped bossing me around now she is a toddler?" Henry asked the adults.
"It isn't just mothers who can be bossy Henry. Toddler's can be quite bossy also. Regina…well she likes things done in a particular way when you play her games." Mary-Margaret explained.
"Yea her way." Henry mumbled.
"Henry you not watching." Regina frowned pulling on his arm. "You need to see how to kills the dragon so we's can run to the king and queen."
"Who is the king and queen?" Henry asked now looking down at Regina.
"Mummy and daddy of course." Regina said with a how did you not know face.
Henry nodded. "Alright." He sighed. "Let's get this dragon." He figured the quicker he listened and done exactly what Regina wanted him to the quicker the game would be over and he could go and sit down for a little bit. He still found the whole situation with his mother completely and utterly weird. His mother being turned into a toddler was perhaps just way out there on his understanding level. Finding out a whole town was filled with fairy tale characters was nothing compared to this situation. However he was beginning to come to terms with the whole thing. Although it was weird that he was now playing prince and princess' with his three year old mother he couldn't help but think she was very cute and quite fun to be around. He could probably get over the weird situation and get used to it after a while.
So he fought the dragon exactly the way Regina wanted him to. Once the dragon was defeated he lifted Regina up and they ran into the living room and Henry passed Regina over to Mary-Margaret and David. Regina cuddled into Mary-Margaret. "Mommy Henry saved me from the dragon." Regina said sweetly and then let out a little yawn, her little hand covering her mouth just like Mary-Margaret had taught her to.
"I am so glad my darling. What would we have done if the dragon had eaten you?" Mary-Margaret said playing along with Regina's game.
"You and daddy be very sad." Regina said with a serious face. They all tried to hold in their laughter as they saw just how serious Regina's face was.
"Yes we would have been sweetheart." Mary-Margaret smiled. She tucked some of Regina's hair behind her ear and watched as Regina rubbed her eyes and then yawned again. "I think it's time for somebody's bed time."
Regina shook her head quickly. "No no mommy. I'm not tired." Regina insisted but another yawn escaped, her body letting her down.
"Come on, let's go get ready for bed. We can have a story." Mary-Margaret suggested. "Go say goodnight to Emma, Henry and daddy."
"Okay mommy." Regina sighed. She slipped off Mary-Margaret's lap on the sofa and crawled over to David. She reached up and David pulled her onto his lap and she hugged him tightly. "Night daddy."
"Night my little princess." David said softly and kissed into her hair.
Regina then slipped off of David's lap and ran over to Emma and jumped up onto her lap. Emma laughed a little and Regina hugged Emma tightly and kissed her on the cheek. "Night Emma."
"Night Regina." Emma smiled. She still found it weird to not fight with Regina all the time and to have the former Evil Queen actually like her and she like her back.
Regina then turned to Henry and she wrapped her arms round him. "Night Henry. Thanks for saving me." She said sweetly.
"That's okay Regina. Any time." Henry smiled back. "Night night."
Regina ran back over to Mary-Margaret and jumped into her arms. Mary-Margaret took Regina upstairs and got her into some pyjamas. She then got Magic for Regina and tucked her into bed once Regina had chosen a book to read. Mary-Margaret sat on the edge of the bed beside Regina and wrapped her arm around the little girl and picked up the book she had chosen. "So what are we reading tonight then Regina?" Mary-Margaret asked.
"Gruffalo!" Regina said excitedly.
"Okay then." Mary-Margaret smiled. She then began to read…"A mouse took a stroll through the deep dark wood..."